Free Speech, Due Process and Trial by Jury
In this edition of Litigation Roundup, the Texas Supreme Court revives a lawyer’s fight with a litigation funder and settles a “fuzzy math” problem in a $50 million royalty dispute.
This summer, Bradley Toben will return to the faculty, where he first began teaching law courses in 1983, following his tenure as the longest-serving dean of any American Bar Association-accredited law school in the country.
Christopher Kirchner, 35, was named in a criminal complaint filed Tuesday for allegedly misappropriating $20 million from the supply-chain management software startup he founded. Additionally, Kirchner has been accused by the SEC in a $67 million offering fraud scheme.
In this edition of Litigation Roundup, a federal judge finds more flaws in the No Surprises Act, a Houston attorney is found guilty of obstruction of justice and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton agrees to apologize and pay-up to settle Whistleblower suit.
Dallas County District Judge Emily Tobolowsky granted family-owned Thompson Petroleum’s motion for summary judgment on Jan. 19, days before a trial was slated to begin in the case where its former chief financial officer argued the company should have to pay his legal fees in a dispute with its former general counsel. Plaintiff Paul Rudnicki filed notice of appeal in the case Monday.
In this edition of Litigation Roundup, Samsung agrees to a $150 million settlement in an intellectual property suit, a group of Texas lawyers secures a $42 million win against Boston Scientific in Delaware and U.S. District Judge Lynn Hughes gets reversed, again.
A jury in McMullen County that heard two weeks of testimony determined Energy Transfer’s underground, hydrogen sulfide injection well had interfered with the drilling rights of SilverBow Resources Operating and El Dorado Oil & Gas Inc. The case has a long history, including two trips to the Texas Supreme Court, and saw Houston-based law firms Yetter Coleman and Ahmad Zavitsanos & Mensing go head-to-head.
The jury was selected Jan. 18 and began hearing testimony Jan. 19 in the trial that had sought as much as $500 million in wrongful death damages on behalf of the family of Ricardo Garza. The jury deliberated for about seven hours before returning its verdict.
The state’s high court, minus three justices who recused themselves from the case, heard oral arguments Tuesday in a case that’s being closely watched by the insurance industry, economic and trial lawyer interest groups and law professors. The case presents the court with an opportunity to clarify the proper standard of review for noneconomic damages awards.
The Texas Supreme Court is considering an opposed motion to hit pause on a whistleblower lawsuit brought by three former top aides to Attorney General Ken Paxton against the Texas AG, accusing him of firing them in retaliation for reporting to the FBI and Texas Rangers that they believed he abused the power of his office to benefit a campaign donor. One of the four whistleblowers isn’t involved in settlement negotiations and wants the lawsuit to proceed now.
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